WE regret having to record the death of Mrs. John Macdonald, Ness. Though comparatively little known beyond the boundaries of the Island of Lewis, she will be greatly missed, especially by the ministers of our Church who were accustomed to come to our Communions, for it was under her hospitable roof they were entertained during those solemn seasons.
Mrs. Macdonald was born in the parish of Moy, Inverness-shire, in 1856. The late Rev. Mr. Baillie was then minister of the Free Church there, and of him she had pleasant recollections, for it was under his teaching that she evidently realised her lost condition as a sinner and knew Christ as her Saviour. Her knowledge of the Scriptures, which was most accurate and extensive, might also be ascribed to the thorough training she received in Mr. Baillie’s Bible Class. At the age of sixteen she left Moy and came to Ness to keep house for her brother, John (now Free Church minister at Lochs), who was then conducting one of the Ladies’ Schools there. At the time of her coming to Ness the late Rev. Mr. MacBeth was minister of the Free Church, whose ministrations she greatly appreciated, and it was during his ministry she made public profession of the change which evidently took place under Mr. Baillie.
When the Free Presbyterian Church was formed in 1893 Mrs. Macdonald had no difficulty in deciding as to her path of duty, and heartily cast in her lot with those who stood for truth and principle, and to these she steadfastly adhered to the end, though having to contend with many difficulties. The death of her son, John, which took place four years ago, impaired her health so much that she never completely rallied. To this son she was much attached, not only as a loving, dutiful son, but also because she believed that, like Abijah, “there was found in him some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel.” Our cause, especially at Ness, has lost a sincere friend, and her presence in the house of God—to which she had to be assisted latterly—will be greatly missed.
She was no stranger to the fiery darts of “the wicked one,” and for some days before her death she was in great darkness regarding her saving interest in Christ, but God, who is faithful and who will not suffer His own to be tempted above that they are able to bear, dispelled her darkness through those words, “The king’s daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold” (Psalm xlv. 13). In this frame she continued until the end, and her last words were, “Let me away.” She departed, we believe, to be with Christ, on the fifteenth day of October. She is survived by her husband and two sons, one of them being an inspector of schools, the other an engineer. To them we extend our sincere sympathies; and may they be found on the Great Day in the garment which is of wrought gold!
N. M’I.